Brief Introduction: {} This exquisite and unique mask is carved out and painted by hand of folk artists without using any machine in China. This one is the Happy Buddha(also call Laughing Buddha). Our people believe he can bring prosperity, happiness, good fortune. and wealth luck to household. {} Because these masks are all handmade, so no two could be the same. {} Can be given as a special gift or use yourself to decorate your home with an exotic flare. Or use it for exorcising. They have a high value as collector's items. {} I have kept these masks in good condition more than 10 years, if you see some very small cracks in few of them. Don't worry. it's normal for wood, they won't be broken. Just keep them in dry place then it will enhance their beauty. {} Explanation of the images shown: 1~6: The mask you will receive and the details.7: The height and width.8: The Depth.9: The backside.10: The carvers and their simple tools. Our local performers who wear the Nuo masks on performance. And adore them in the home. 11: Our local performers who wear the Nuo masks on performance. And adore them in the home.

{} The origin and function of China's mask: China's mask arts originated from the ancient exorcising ceremony aimed at driving away devils and pestilence. In ancient times, our ancestor felt perplexed and frightened at the diseases, pestilence and death facing the mankind. They thought devils were stirring up trouble in human bodies, so they put on horrified masks and danced violent and frantic dances to expel devils and plague. The Dancer who wore the mask to drive away demons and pestilence was called Fang Xiangshi. Fang xiangshi used to sound "Nuo. Nuo" when he drove away devils. That's the reason why mask called "Nuo mask" and the performance called "Nuo Opera" which means exorcising. In ancient times, primitive forefather couldn't imagine the shape of demons and compared them to the ugly, horribleness and cruelty. Masks were more fierce and cruel than demons, but featured naivete. The exorcising ceremony was common in ancient China but very solemn. In the Han and Tang dynasties(BC 206 ~ AD 907), the ceremony had some amusement and it turned to opera when it was influenced by the poetic drama set to music in the Song Dynasty(AD960~1279). Then the ceremony died away in Ming and Qing dynasties(1368~1911). China had various kinds of exorcising ceremonies which could be divided into "Townsman Nuo" and "Army Nuo". Each used masks when it was held. With advance of times, the exorcising ceremony has developed from simple dances to complicated operas. A lot of masks operas featuring the exorcising ceremony have appeared in China to be performed in the fixed time. When you read here, you could find the history of these masks were more than 2000 years. They must be the "ancestor" of all China's opera, so they are also called the alive fossil of all China's opera. The memorial mask opera used to be performed in the Winter Solstice and the Lantern Festival. When it was over, masks were put in the box. When they were taken out, performers would hold a grand ceremony. Wearing masks, performers were meant to become gods with magical strength. In performances, players and audience were permeated with fervour to drive devils and pestilence together. None of other operas could have such a result. Mask opera today have retained a lot of ancient cultural marrow. The exorcising ceremony has been in vogue for several thousand years and the centuries-old mask opera has created many colorful masks and sculptures. Generally speaking, masks used for the exorcising ceremony or the memorial ceremony are sculptured at a stretch, but some masks have movable eyes and lower jaws to reach the strong dramatic result. Some have only a half face without the lower part. Carving masks is a very sacred matter and the technique is passed on from generation to generation. Carving has special demand on the process, color and shape. Folk artists carve masks with their hearts instead of hands and the masks they create are sacred images for people to worship and the super-natural objects for people to respect. The masks are imbued with religious ardour. Though they have their own way to carve masks, they all try to exaggerate their works and let believers keep a psychological distance with gods and devils so that they can have a sense of revere. Airtists believe that gods exist in the masks and what they do is to let them show up. The artistic and uninhibited style shown in the mask carving has resulted in the modern arts. This is the valuable wealth China's folk arts have contributed to. The exorcising ceremony has nearlydied away in China, but its wish to drive away devils and pestilence has settled in our blood and hearts. Nowadays, masks have become decorations of modern families and children's toys. But its derivative, a demon-detector, still can be seen in the real life. If you are visit our Chinese family, do not be surprised by those mirrors which hang on the door, the mirrors' function are same like mask: Drive away devils and protect family, because suitable mask will cost more and not easy to find, so people use mirror instead.

Please go to my store and enter: NUO in the search field for a full list of all Chinese traditional masks.

Payment: Winner must respond to our invoice within 48 hours of sales end. Payment must be received within 7 days. We only accept Paypal. If you are purchasing a wholesale order, payment method should be arranged before sale conclusion.

Shipping:The item will be mailed worldwide by air mail with tracking number. Items will arrive in 10~15 business days(Most shipments arrive in 10 ~ 15 business days, but may take up to a month or 4~6 weeks depending your location and go through both customs). I'm not responsible once the packages leave my hands to your destination. All items are shipped from China by China Post Office. The items will be shipped to buyer within 3 working days after your payment cleared.

Combined Shipping:As we provide free shipping, therefore I do not provide shipping discount, I do apologise.

Buyer Notice:

Import duties, taxes and charges are not included in the item price or shipping charges. These charges are the buyerâ€™s responsibility.

Please check with your countryâ€™s customs office to determine what these additional costs will be prior to offerding/buying.

response PolicyOur response policy is as follows: We leave response when we receive it. This assures us that your shipment has arrived at its destination. If there are any problems, please email us before posting response. Leave me a chance to resolve the issue first.

Sorry occupied your so much time to see my description.Please forgive my poor English, if anywhere you misunderstand, Any Question, please connectwith us.Thank you